Flotsam & Jetsam

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Papua New Guinea. Rob Van der Loos sold his popular liveaboard, the MV Chertan, a few months back, and it is no longer being used for diving. He says piracy at sea and violence on land made it impossible to run his business. "Most vessels carrying out trips there do so with armed security on board," he told Undercurrent.

Honduras Steps Up Reef Protection. The Honduran government has issued a nationwide fishing ban to protect coral reefs, groupers, and other key marine species. This nationwide fishing ban prohibits the harvest of herbivorous fish such as parrotfish and surgeonfish, and key grouper species during their spawning season from November to April -- a period vital to reef reproduction and resilience. They also reinstated seasonal bans on spiny lobster and queen conch.

Confrontation Leads to Arrest. After a Taiwanese client accidentally dropped an air tank on a 38-year-old Malaysian diving instructor's foot during a boat ride to a dive site at Pulau Timba-Timba, east of Semporna, on July 22, the injured man was treated in a Tawau hospital. He returned to the tour company's premises the following day and demanded the tourist pay him compensation. This precipitated an argument, resulting in the diving instructor striking the Taiwanese national and threatening further harm. The instructor was later arrested after his victim made a complaint to the police, who now seek witnesses. (Free Malaysia Today)...

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